Wayne had been imprisoned since 2005, when he was sentenced to serve two terms of 20 years to life behind bars for the fatal stabbing of the 87-year-old star, who rose to fame in the 1920s as a castmember of popular comedy shorts Our Gang, aka The Little Rascals.

Smith had reportedly befriended homeless Crombie and allowed him to live in his shed, but Crombie repaid his kindness by killing him and dumping his body in a desert. His remains were found in October, 2002.